Senior Audit Associate

At Ascend, we understand the struggles that accounting & finance professionals face in traditional public accounting firms - from rigid hierarchies, overwhelming workloads, and the elusive work-life balance. It’s time for a transformative change. We believe your ambition should not be constrained by outdated practices or opaque career paths. Here, you're not just a number; you’re a valued member of a community that supports & celebrates your professional & personal fulfillment.

Our mission is to transform the public accounting experience into one where work-life harmony is a reality, and where your career advancement is supported by a nurturing network and comprehensive resources.

Ascend empowers entrepreneurial CPAs to reach their goals with an innovative growth model that brings our partner firms into the new age. Backed by private equity from people-focused Alpine Investors, Ascend is building a modern platform for regional accounting firms that enables them to stay independent while having access to resources of a large CPA firm. These resources include growth capital, robust talent acquisition, best-of-breed technology, a catalytic leadership system, shared back-office services, and modernized equity incentives.

Founded in January 2023, Ascend attained revenues sufficient to qualify it as a Top 100 U.S. accounting firm within six months of operation. Explore Ascend, where your career soars without sacrificing your quality of life.

About Blackman & Sloop

At Blackman & Sloop, we hire great people and give them a great place to work. We listen to what our employees value, and being a local firm gives us the advantage of flexibility. Our secret to retaining staff is a positive culture, strong community involvement, and a dedication to constantly increasing our competencies. We are a single-office firm with approximately 45 full-time staff.

For 7 consecutive years, we’ve been honored as one of Accounting Today’s “Best Accounting Firms to Work For”! We've also been recognized by Business North Carolina as one of the “Best Employers in North Carolina” list for the past 4 years. Most recently, we are proud to have received BDO's award for outstanding workplace culture! We believe we’re receiving this recognition based on our commitment to and from each employee, regardless of level.

As an independent member of the BDO Alliance, we have access to the resources of BDO USA, LLP, the world's 5th largest accounting and consulting firm. Additionally in April 2024, we made the strategic decision to join Ascend to usher us in our next stage of growth. What this means to you is that while we're a local accounting firm, our reach and expertise have no boundaries.

Each member of our staff has access to an unlimited amount of resources to gain valuable information on levels that most local firms do not encounter.

Blackman & Sloop is excited to welcome a new industry to our client base! As we expand into the auto dealership space, we are seeking a new Senior Audit Associate to join our team. This role will have a strong emphasis on supporting our dealership clients, while also providing opportunities to work across a variety of other areas (such as non-profit, construction, small business, manufacturing, medical, real estate, retail, hospitality, education, and more).

As a Senior Audit Associate, you will work in a growth-filled and rewarding position. You will be expected to manage clients in a variety of industries. The successful candidate will have prior experience performing audits of companies, excellent interpersonal skills, be team-oriented, be comfortable with direct client interaction, and will regularly seek opportunities for professional growth.

• Helping to effectively plan and execute assurance engagements
• Guiding less-experienced associates on client engagements
• Organizing and monitoring client projects and tasks
• Functioning as the communication channel between associates, clients, and management

• 2-4+ years of experience carrying out audit methodologies & techniques within public accounting
• In-depth foundational knowledge of US GAAP guidelines
• Ability to…